


sacrifice a pawn (to save a queen)

by speckled_dragon



Category: Drag-On Dragoon | Drakengard
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Canon Disabled Character, Canon-Typical Behavior, F/M, SFFest28, Small Fandom Fest 28, Telepathic Bond
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-04
Updated: 2021-01-04
Packaged: 2021-03-14 08:40:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,116
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28542690
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/speckled_dragon/pseuds/speckled_dragon
Summary: The seals are broken.The world is ending.That does not mean that Caim has to give up everything.Prompt fill for Small Fandom Fest: He wasn't about to let some useless priest bind his dragon for an ungrateful humanity.
Relationships: Caim/Red Dragon | Angel(us)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 11
Collections: Small Fandoms Fest





	sacrifice a pawn (to save a queen)

Caim stared at this child, tiny and blonde, and possessing a voice she shouldn’t as she dissolved into sobbing at his feet. This girl, this speaker for a cult, was what led their world to such ruin. He...wasn’t sure what to think of it. 

That meant nothing to his rage, of course. His disgust. His fury. This pathetic unloved child had tried to destroy the world to find someone who would love her. He cannot forgive her for her actions. But understanding why she did it made the world less mad. 

Marginally. 

“Kill me! Please, please kill me!” The girl begged, stumbling closer to Caim and grabbing onto his legs. He stifled his irritation – what was it with people and _touching_ him – and stepped out of her grasp. She gasped and grabbed at him again. “Come on! Don’t you wanna? I deserve it – I deserve to die! Please...” Her words faded away and she continued to cry, gasping to try and regain her breath. 

The Red Dragon turned her head, glancing at Caim before facing the child again. Her head twisted. “No,” she said, speaking aloud the words swirling in Caim’s mind. “You shall not leave this world so easily, child. You shall walk this earth until you have witnessed all of the suffering that you have wrought.” The girl flinched away and the Red Dragon leaned forward until her horns were brushing against Caim’s shoulder. “Oh? Are you frightened, child, of seeing the consequences of your actions? Perhaps, then, you shall learn why you shouldn’t do such things again.” 

“We don’t have time for this,” Verdelet said, interrupting them, and the Dragon snarled quietly as her irritation meshed with Caim’s. “The Goddess is dead, there’s nothing we can do now.” 

The two of them exchanged a look at the priest’s theatrics but Caim did frown and look to where his sister had once stood, the bloodstain on the jutting crystal the only sign that she had been there. So, this is what it was like before the end of the world? It didn’t seem like much. Though the crying child and doomsaying priest seemed apt. 

“Caim...” the Red Dragon called, speaking through their shared minds. He turned back to her only to see her fully facing him, her eyes piercing into his. “I could take the place of the Goddess. If the seal is placed on me...we may be able to survive.” 

But even as the first sentence was coming to a close, Caim was already shaking his head. No, _no_. The Dragon was all he had left, all this world had not decided to rip away from him. He wasn't about to let some useless priest bind his dragon for an ungrateful humanity. When she tried to look away and address Verdelet, he grabbed her horns and forced her to keep looking at him. He would not see her pinned down like some exotic butterfly for humanity’s salvation. 

With that thought came an idea that crept to the forefront of his mind, and from there the Dragon read it easily. She considered it, her eyes still level with his, and finally dipped her head in a human-esque nod. “Very well.” 

He let go of her horns and together they faced Verdelet and the girl. “Child, do you truly wish for this world’s forgiveness? Perhaps, even still, their love?” 

The girl sobbed a little more before composing herself enough to give them a little nod. “Yes.” She sounded ashamed, as if it were some great sin to want to be cared for. “I do, more than anything.” 

“Well then,” the Dragon said, sounding pleased, “I do believe we have a solution to your problem, priest. After all, who is more beloved than the Goddess who saved us all when the world was falling apart? If you take the mark, child, I doubt you will be wanting for love and adoration.” 

“But, she is just a child!” Verdelet exclaimed, sounding aghast. 

“And so was the Goddess before her,” the Dragon argued, plucking the information out of Caim’s mind with ease. “This one has greater power than Furiae. She will survive the ritual.” 

“You really think so?” The girl asked, looking shocked and hungry for the positive attention. The Dragon dipped her head in another nod. 

Verdelet appeared conflicted but he seemed to steel himself for the work ahead. He knelt down and offered his hand to the girl. “Come then, child. Let us find a clear spot for the ritual.” He glanced back at the man and dragon still there, and the look on his face was one of confusion and suspicion, as if something has escaped him that he only noticed because of its absence. “While I am doing this, I do believe there is someone in the forests you may want to retrieve. He may be able to provide insight on what has happened here.” 

Caim shrugged and nodded, jumping onto the Dragon’s neck as she snorted at the priest. “Can you be more specific, or shall we be searching every forest on this earth while you perform your ritual?” 

“Where the golems lay, if you remember. Someone should be calling out to you when you are in range.” 

Caim rolled his eyes at the cryptic words but the Dragon turned them away, taking to the sky so that they could get this ridiculous request done with. 

“What shall we do now, Caim? The war is...perhaps not over, but close to it. The seals will be reformed, the Cult shall likely reform as well. It is only a matter of time before the events repeat themselves, and we again find ourselves at the end of the world.” 

Caim thought on the Dragon’s words as they flew, the wind blowing his hair in disarray and obscuring his vision. Perhaps it was time to no longer be on the reactive side of this war, he contemplated. Perhaps it was time to be the aggressor, be the one calling the shots and giving every attempt the Empire had to defeat them a glimmer of hope before crushing it under foot. Maybe, just maybe, Caim would finally have his way, and spill enough blood that even he could be satisfied with the outcome. 

The Dragon listened to his thoughts. “Truly, you are a being beyond my comprehension, to revel in so much carnage.” She grew quiet and they rode an updraft in silence. For once, the sky was clear of enemies, so certain were they of their victory. “But...it feels at times as if you’ve infected me, for I am beginning to see the benefits of keeping our enemies cringing before us.” 

Caim smiled.


End file.
